Wife of paralysed motorbike stunt rider Eddie Kidd charged with repeatedly beating him
Estranged wife Samantha Kidd charged with six counts of assault by beatingEddie, 53, recently split from his wife after five years' marriageMrs Kidd was arrested by police following reports of domestic violence

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UPDATED:

02:04 GMT, 21 December 2012

The estranged wife of tragic motorcycle stunt rider Eddie Kidd has been charged with beating the severely disabled star.

Samantha Kidd, 44, faces six charges of assault between July and October.

The former model and actress was arrested on December 11 following reports to police of domestic violence.

Mr Kidd, 53, who was left paralysed
and brain-damaged when an attempt to jump over 13 buses went wrong in
1996, recently split from his wife after five years of marriage.

She moved out of the home they shared
in Seaford, near Brighton, while Mr Kidd changed his Facebook status
from ‘married’ to ‘single’.

Meanwhile the former daredevil was said to be consulting lawyers about a divorce.

At the time of the split friends of
Mrs Kidd, whose husband is confined to a wheelchair and needs round the
clock care, said: ‘Sami had to do absolutely everything for him.’

Marathon man: Mr Kidd, pictured left as he completed the London marathon in 43 days last year and right, in 1981 on his motorbike

A police spokesman said the charges had been brought following a ‘prompt and thorough investigation’.

Mrs Kidd has been bailed with strict conditions not to contact her husband or to visit the area where he lives.

She is due to appear before Brighton Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, January 9.

A police spokesman said: ‘We take all
allegations of domestic abuse seriously and encourage people to have the
confidence to report, whether by those who are being afflicted or
others who have concerns.

‘We will work with partners to provide
support and always seek the best solution for victims, bringing
appropriate offences to court.’ Mr Kidd, who was previously married to
Hot Gossip dancer Debbie Ash and ex-Stringfellows nightclub waitress
Sarah Carr, first met the current Mrs Kidd in 1988.

He left her heartbroken when he dumped
her after dating and she later claimed she had turned down six
proposals from other men after that time.

They later met by chance at a party in Mayfair in 2004, before meeting again three years later and beginning a relationship.

Happier times: The couple pictured together at the Hard Rock Festival in Hyde Park

Eddie Kidd with first wife, Debbie Ash, left, and with second wife Sarah Carr, pictured right

Mrs Kidd has previously said: ‘To me, he was the most gorgeous man who’d walked this earth.’

The former stuntman was left in a coma for three-and-a-half months after his bike jump went wrong.

He broke his neck, pelvis and suffered
brain damage when his head hit the motorbike’s petrol tank during a
stunt at the Bulldog Bash annual motorcycle festival, near
Stratford-upon-Avon.

Since the accident Mr Kidd, who has
three children from previous marriages, has been confined to a
wheelchair, unable to talk or walk unaided and requires full-time care.

Last year he completed the London
Marathon nearly two months after setting out and was awarded the OBE in
the Queen’s Birthday honours list in June.

He first stunned spectators in
December 1979 when he jumped 80ft across a derelict railway bridge in
Essex on a 400cc Yamaha motorbike.

His achievements culminated in 1993
when he jumped the Great Wall of China and beat Robbie Knievel, son of
Evel Knievel, to the stunt bike world championship.

He worked as a stunt double in many
films, appearing for Timothy Dalton in the Living Daylights, Roger Moore
and Michael Caine in Bullseye! and Pierce Brosnan in GoldenEye.

Astonishing feat: This shows Eddie Kidd jumping 80ft across the River Chelmer at Maldon, Essex, in 1979

Stunned onlookers: One of his career highlights was when Eddie Kidd took on the Great Wall of China in 1993